Perspective
Dharma and the Modern World
by TA Ramesh
Necessity to Maintain Dharma
Eternal
natural order is natural beauty enjoyable at good times and tolerable at
bad times, which is called as dharma everyone has to follow in order to
live a justified life in the world. Of all the world religions the
uniqueness of Hinduism or Hindu Culture or age old Indian Culture, which
is handed down to us generation after generation, lies in Dharma, which
is righteousness, eternal order, beauty, discipline, natural justice and
all in one. It reveals the truth that man can escape from the loopholes
of man made worldly laws and bend justice according to his will but not
escape from God made or Natural Laws and bend Dharma. Why?
Man made laws are there to render justice to human body only, but God
made laws, Natural Laws or Dharma are there to render justice not only
for human mind but also for human spirit. Not knowing the cause or
reason world men suffer in the present birth for the mistakes or sins
they have committed against dharma in the previous birth or births, and
which is interpreted as the fate of man in the world. Also, it is fate
that men have to repent or undergo punishments in the next birth for the
mistakes they make in the present birth. So, it is better to know what
dharma is and follow what is one’s dharma in the world, if one wants to
upgrade oneself in life and fulfill the destiny of one’s life at last.
Dharma for Success
In the modern world carried away by the mechanical way of living people
don’t think about dharma, understand dharma and live according to dharma
just as they don’t care for Nature, Culture and Art, which is the root
cause for all the problems they are facing and suffering today. Dharma
is not an old fashioned religious tradition or blind belief based on
caste just as human culture is also believed to be. But on the contrary,
it is a reality that people who live according to dharma, never fail in
anything in the world. Person of dharma realizes the Self, understands
one’s nature, develops it with education and trainings to the best one
can, does all works as perfectly as possible with a broad ambition and
lives a full life with success in the world. That is why dharma is very
important and necessary for everyone to follow one’s dharma in life.
Caste cannot decide one’s Dharma
The great Hindu religion, which was supposed to have spread itself into
number one world religion, lost luster because of casteism and Brahmin
caste domination over other castes in India. After the Vedic period
mainly due to that drawback, Hinduism did not become popular among the
mass in the Brahmanic period. As a result, Buddhism grew up popular
among the people because of its democratic nature and developed into a
world religion. Then Hinduism revived when Adi Sankara came into the
picture and was responsible for beginning the building activity of Hindu
Temples with the idols of God all over India on the model of Buddhist
Temples allowing the participation of people in the common worship and
in the festivals in large numbers.
Afterwards reformers like Raja Mohan Ray, Dayanadha Sarasvathi, Sri
Ramakrishna Paramahamsa and Vivekananda introduced spiritualized form or
new version of Hinduism for the development of casteless and strong
society of India, which would be spiritually cap- able of uniting and
leading the world people to peace, prosperity and total liberation. In
spite of reforms, foreign dominations over India for centuries, casteism
survived and after independence of India politicians are exploiting it
for their advantages. However due to secular reformists, democracy,
spread of education, modernization and developments, the effect of
casteism is minimized though not yet completely eliminated, the process
of which would take some two or three more generations to bring it to
the desired logical end. So, because of freedom, rights, democracy and
education, people have the choice to choose the type of dharmic life
suitable for them and live accordingly without fear of exploitation and
domination by any higher caste men.
Epics of India
The two oldest and immortal epics of India, Ramayana by poet Valmiki and
Mahabharata by poet Vyasa say in the story form what Dharma is, what is
the power of Dharma and how the life of dharma can be lived for the
common man to understand and follow the Principles of Dharma in the life
of the world. As the highest philosophic ideas, best thoughts of human
beings and the solutions for difficult human problems in life and after
life were literarily, morally and spiritually explored and expressed by
the nuances of finely developed Sanskrit language through those epics,
Sanskrit had become a divine language. Then the moral and spiritual
ideas of Hinduism in various versions were expressed in various
languages of India and the world and their interpretations are still
being expressed in various languages today, because they are all still
applicable in life and far ahead of time.
Dharma in Four Yugas
It is said that dharma was prevailing over everywhere in all walks of
life in the Kreta Yuga lasting for a period of 17,28,000 years, which
was described as the Golden Age. Next, in the Treta Yuga lasting for 12
,96,000 years, dharma was governing the affairs of men for 75% and
adharma was 25% when actually the incidences of Ramayana, it is
believed, had taken place. The places like Ayodhya and Lanka have
conformingly made Ramayana a historical truth. So, Treta Yuga was
described as Copper Age. Then at the end of Dwabara Yuga, which had
lasted for 8, 64,000 years and was described as Bronze Age, Mahabharata
War came to an end.
In the Dwabara Yuga it is said that dharma was controlling the people
only by 50% but Bhagavad-Gita of Lord Krishna coming in the Mahabharata
Epic has become an eternal book of Hindu religion, which guides the life
of the people as to how to face the problems and solve them in the
world, provided one follows the life of yoga suitable to one’s nature so
that happiness and sorrow in life can be balanced in the same way. Now
the world is moving somewhere in the 5,035th year or so of the Kali
Yuga, which is supposed to last for a period of 4,32,000 years,
described as the Iron Age, when dharma will be 25% and adharma will be
75% activating the affairs of men in all walks of life leading to
anarchy, chaos, wars and destruction resulting in the victory to Dharma
at the end.
Model Man of Dharma
The great poet Valmiki has wonderfully depicted the main Character Rama,
the hero of Ramayana as God in the form of man living the life of dharma
undergoing all possible ordeals from the birth to death as an example
for mankind, which is why it is being read yesterday, today and
tomorrow. Just a day before taking up the throne, Rama simply
relinquishes all of his courtly things and goes to the forest as a
simple man for 14 years in order to fulfill the vow of his father
without any grudge. When his wife Sita is abducted, Rama goes from the
forest to Lanka, fights against Ravana successfully, returns again to
Ayodhya with his wife and crowns himself as the emperor after 14 years.
After becoming the emperor, Rama leaves Sita again in the forest and
rules the people with good governance for the sake of the people in the
same vein.
Whether it is kingdom or forest, Rama pays full justice to his accepted
mission without bothering about his happiness, emotion and benefits.
Though God, nowhere he uses his divine power or position for his
personal gains, but simply executes his duties as a man according to
one’s dharma. Even after Sita’s end, Rama patiently bears all his
emotional pangs, crowns his twin sons to rule the kingdom and ends his
life while taking bath in the Sarayu River, as his mission has come to
an end in the world. Rama is a model character, though too difficult to
follow, it is the best way to live in order to overcome all the
sufferings of the world. That is why Rama is ever great and immortal as
long as the world is there. Also, that was the reason even Mahatma
Gandhi too dreamed of forming Rama Rajya in India after it got
independence.
Importance of Dharma in Literature
Though the path of Dharma is difficult, yet it is the best way to live
in this world, because dharma only can save one at difficult times in
life. This was the reason a Tamil poet Kambar of great talent took as a
challenge to write Ramayana in Tamil language and as a result, Kamba-Ramayana
also has become immortal in the world of literature. Hence the great
poet Bharathi has showered great praise for him by openly saying to the
world that of all the poets we are aware of, it is rare to see poets
like Kambar, Valluvar and Elango. So in that way, Kambar is ranked first
in the list of best Tamil poets.
Not only Kambar but also Valluvar wrote about the Life of Dharma in 1330
verses following the poetic form of couplet in his Thirukkural some 2000
years ago based on the essence of Bhagavad-Gita, i.e. Existence,
Knowledge, Bliss and Absolute giving importance to the first three items
only in a classified way as they are what most needed for mankind to
live dharmic life in the world. Also, like the character Rama that gives
importance to monogamy in life, Elango, another great poet of Tamil
language wrote Silappathikaram, in which the woman character, Kannagi
like Draupati of Mahabharata gives importance to chastity of woman,
which is praised by everyone in the world.
Unity and Brotherhood
Millions of years ago it was realized that only by peace, unity and
brotherhood the world as one family (Vasudevaya Kudumbakam) can
be formed for the well being of humanity as a whole. For that first of
all unity among brothers is very important and essential; otherwise,
wars will be a common thing in the world. The great poet Vyasa mainly
wrote Mahabharata to stress the point, unity among brothers by taking
brotherhood as its theme. Thereby he wrote Bhagavad-Gita as an advice
given by the incarnation of God, Lord Krishna to Arjuna as to how life
of dharma can be lived in the world following the path of yoga to
achieve perfection in life.
Nature of Men and their Professions
In Bhagavad-Gita it is said that the nature of men are mainly of three
types that are 1. Calm type, 2. Arrogant type and 3. Careless type.
Ideally the calm and unassuming types of people representing the top
layer of the society are suitable to be sages, priests, advisers,
intellectuals, writers, etc. for giving advice, comments, criticism and
suggestions for problems to men in high places. The arrogant and
dominating types of persons are suitable for functioning as leaders,
kings, presidents, ministers, administrators, executives and army
commanders for defending and building up the nation in all respects.
Men, naturally having the combination of these two types in one are
suitable for doing business, agricultural, industrial and
entrepreneurial activities and various professional works for enriching
the economy of the nation. Finally, the careless, callous and carefree
types of people cannot be capable of doing independent jobs of their own
and so, they can be just workers and employees of public and private
enterprises of the nation.
So, people can do these jobs actually by nature, qualification and
ability only but certainly not by caste, which cannot truly guarantee
anyone for any job in the world. Hence caste or class system, which is
spoiling the progress of the nation, has to be disbanded by all means by
the realization of all concerned in any society in the world. However
for all types of people, life means existence, knowledge, bliss and
absolute, the four fold path, which has to be followed to have
fulfillment or completion in life. If the four fold path of life is
known and understood well, there will be clarity and determination in
the progress of one’s life in the world. That would be the best way of
life suited for anyone to avoid clashes and create remarkable things for
the betterment of the world.
Evolution of Spirit in Bhagavad-Gita
Finally, Bhagavad-Gita distinguishes itself over other ethics of the
world as far as evolution of human soul is concerned, which is not
addressed convincingly and authentically in other holy scriptures.
Scientific discoveries of truth in Nature or Universe have shattered
religious authority, superstitions and blind belief or faith except its
moral ideas. In the modern world Darwinian Theory of the evolution of
man has been widely accepted everywhere and further researches are going
on in that respect. Darwinian evolution addresses only about the
physical evolution of man but does not say anything about the mental and
spiritual evolution of man.
This is where the essence of Bhagavad-Gita helps much by its spiritual
ideas of progress from manhood to divine hood, which is possible by the
life of yoga that gives importance to meditation and mysticism in
Nature, which is enjoyable to follow in order to make this world a
paradise. In this regard the interpretation of Sri Aurobindo on Indian
philosophy says that after the physical evolution of man, evolution of
Nature does not stop but continues in the development of man’s mind and
will continue in the development of human spirit, which only can give
real freedom in all respects to everyone in the world. To achieve that
kind of development towards the creation of One Human World as envisaged
by many intellectuals which is possible only by peace, unity and
international brotherhood.
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Eternal
natural order is natural beauty enjoyable at good times and tolerable at
bad times, which is called as dharma everyone has to follow in order to
live a justified life in the world. Of all the world religions the
uniqueness of Hinduism or Hindu Culture or age old Indian Culture, which
is handed down to us generation after generation, lies in Dharma, which
is righteousness, eternal order, beauty, discipline, natural justice and
all in one. It reveals the truth that man can escape from the loopholes
of man made worldly laws and bend justice according to his will but not
escape from God made or Natural Laws and bend Dharma. Why? 
